Display holder



April 1968 G. v. BROTHERS 3,376,975

DISPLAY HOLDER Filed May 10, 1967 INVENTOR GE ORGE V.V.BRO THERE V ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,376,975 DISPLAY HOLDER George V. V. Brothers, Egremout Plain, Great Barrington, Mass. 01230 Filed May 10, 1967, Ser. No. 637,597 5 Claims. (Cl. 206-78) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A holder for containing and displaying merchandise, which may be either suspended from a rack or self-supported on a shelf or counter, so constructed that the supported article can be readily viewed while in the holder. The holder is constructed to discourage pilfering of the article supported thereby and to thus encourage the display of articles which might otherwise not be displayed by merchants.

Background of the invention The invention relates to a special receptacle or package for displaying a product for retail sale.

The prior art discloses specially constructed holders for containing and displaying articles for sale but which are not so designed so as to render it inconvenient to quickly detach the article from the holder and wherein the holder, while containing the article, may not be readily placed in a garment pocket, to thus discourage pilfering.

Summary A primary object of the present invention is to provide a holder for small relatively expensive products which is so constructed that the product, while contained in the holder, cannot be readily pilfered, to thus encourage the display by retail merchants of products which might otherwse not be displayed due to the risk of loss to the merchants by theft.

Another object of the invention is to provide a holder which is intended to be delivered to the customer with the purchased article, and which is capable of carrying advertising material of the m'anfacturer as well as instructions of the use of the product and which could not readily be applied directly to the container for the product.

A further object of the invention is to provide a holder which is so constructed that the contents of the article, when contained in a clear jar, may be readily viewed while in the holder.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a holder of extremely simple construction which may be very economically manufactured, yet which is so constructed that the article supported thereby will be retained by a resilient clamping action within the holder, requiring the use of two hands for removing the article therefrom.

Another object of the invention is to provide a holder in the form of a sling having crease or fold lines so arranged as to produce the resilient gripping action of the holder on the article contained therein, and which will additionally prevent rupturing of the holder.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a holder which is so constructed that when in an open position and containing an article for display, will have its front wall sufiiciently flat so that indicia printed thereon may be readily read by prospective purchasers of the product.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawing, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

3,376,975 Patented Apr. 9, l 968 Brief description of the drawing view of the display with a displayed article con- Deseription of the preferred embodiment Referring more specifically to the drawing, the display holder in its entirety and comprising the invention is designated generally '6 'and is formed from a single elongated strip 7, preferably of cardboard or cardstock, but which may be formed of other suitable materials. The strip 7 is folded upon itself nearly intermediate of its ends along a transverse fold line 8 to provide a front wall 9 and a rear wall 10. The end portions .11 and 12 of the strip 7, constituting portions of the walls 9 and 10, respectively,

' which are disposed remote from the fold 8, are bonded together, as seen in FIGURE 2, in any conventional manner.

The front and rear walls 9 'and 10 are provided with creases 13 and 14 which extend thereacross and which are located adjacent to and equal distances from the crease 8. The rear wall 10 has a crease 15 extending thereacross and which is located immediately beneath the end portion 12. The front wall 9 has a relatively large circular opening 16, the bottommost part of which is located in close proximity to the crease 13, as seen in FIGURES 1 and 2. An opening -17 is formed in the bonded together end portions 11 and 12, approximately in the centers thereof.

FIGURE 4 illustrates the display holder 6 as it would appear prior to being opened for use and in a flat condition enabling it to be conveniently stacked for transportation or storage.

An article to be displayed in the holder 6 is shown in FIGURES 1 and 2 and comprises a jar 18 having 'a threaded closure cap 19. The cap is provided with a rim 20.

The holder 6 is opened from its flat condition of FIG- URE 4 by separating the walls 9 and 10. Pressure may then be exerted by the thumb against the fold 8 to cause the bottom portion 21 of the holder 6, located between the creases 13 and 14, to assume a substantially flat condition as seen in FIGURE 2, with the walls 9 and 10 separated from one another and extending upwardly from the bottom 21 at the folds 13 and 14, respectively. The walls 9 and 10 can then be spread further apart with the fingers so that the jar 18, with the cap 19 applied thereto, can be inserted into the holder through either open side 22 thereof, and with the bottom of the jar 18 abutting the inner side of the rear wall 10, and the cap 19 abutting the inner side of the front wall 9. The jar is moved crosswise within the holder 6 until the cap 19 is in alignment with the opening 16. Said opening 16 is of a size to receive the cap 19 which is resiliently urged outwardly therethrough by the spring action of the holder 6, which tends to be spring urged back toward its flat condition of FIGURE 4. The opening 16 is smaller than the flange 20 so that portions of said flange bear against the innerside of the front wall 9 around the opening 16, to limit the extent the cap can protrude through the open- )ing 16. The jar 18 is of a depth so that its bottom will 3 abut the innerside of the rear wall 10, to hold the bottom 21 extended and substantially fiat with the walls 9 and 10 under tension when the flange 20 is engaging the front wall 9. With the jar 18 thus disposed in the holder 6, a portion thereof will rest on the bottom 21, as seen in FIG- URE 2.

As seen in FIGURE 2, the crease permits the rear wall 10 to swing outwardly relative to its upper portion 12 and prevents this movement of the rear wall from tending to separate the wall portion 12 from the wall portion 11. Additionally, because of the crease 15, the rear wall 10 will be curved to a greater extent than the front wall 9, so that the front wall will have a convex curvature from the fold 13 to approximately the uppermost part of the opening 16, while the upper portion of the front wall 9, including the portion 11, will be substantially flat and will be inclined upwardly and rearwardly. Thus, advertising and other printed matter appearing on the outer side of said upper portion of the wall 9 will be positioned to be conveniently read by prospective customers.

The large openings 22 at hot sides of the holder 6 permit prospective customers to view the contents of the jar 18, assuming that said jar is formed of a clear glass or plastic.

The bottom 21 of the holder 6 may rest on a shelf or counter 23, as illustrated in FIGURES 1 and 2, with the holder 6 disposed in substantially an upright position, or the holder may be suspended from a hook or the like, not shown, which engages through the opening 17.

The holder 6, with the jar applied thereto, is too large to be placed in a garment pocket. The six corners of the holder, as seen in FIGURES l and 3, are purposely not rounded to further insure that the open holder will not fit into a pocket.

It will also be noted that the use of two hands is required to conveniently detach the jar 18 from the display holder 6.

It will be readily apparent that the jar 18 could be provided with a shoulder to engage the wall 9 around the opening 16, so that the flange 20 could be omitted. However, the flange 20 is preferred since it additionally functions with the holder to prevent removal of the cap from the jar while applied to the holder. This is of importance where the contents of the jar may be damaged by contact with air.

It will be understood that the display may be used for supporting other types of merchandise and may be made in different sizes, depending upon the size of the article to be supported thereby.

Various other modifications and changes are contemplated and may be resorted to, without departing from 4 the function or scope of the invention, as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination with a container for merchandise, a display holder comprising an elongated blank, folded approximately intermediate of its ends, to form a front wall and a rear wall, said walls having bonded together end portions disposed remote from said fold, said walls having creases extending transversely thereacross and spaced equal distances from said fold, said front wall having an opening extending to adjacent the crease thereof, said walls being spread apart and the fold displaced upwardly to cause the walls to fold along said creases providing a bottom portion extending from side-toside of the holder and between said creases, said holder having open sides either of which provides an entrance opening for said container, said container having a portion protruding through said opening and an enlargement abutting the inner side of the front wall adjacent to the opening, the container being of a size such that a part thereof abuts against the rear wall and another part is in contact with the bottom retaining the open holder under tension and in substantially an upright position.

2. In a combination as in claim 1, said rear wall having a crease extending thereacross beneath and adjacent to the bonded end portion thereof about which the rear wall swings when the holder is opened, said last mentioned crease providing a fold to prevent separation of the bonded end portions of the blank when the holder is opened and the container is applied thereto and for causing said front wall to be substantially fiat above the opening thereof.

3. In a combination as in claim 1, said blank being formed of cardstock.

4. In a combination as in claim 1, said bottom forming a base for mounting the holder on a shelf or counter with the container applied thereto.

5. In a combination as in claim 1, said bonded end portions of the walls having registering openings adapted to engage an element for suspending the holder therefrom with the container applied thereto.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,713,758 5/1929 Horwath 248-l52 2,210,643 8/1940 Warren 220-109 2,229,427 1/1941 Tanner 20645.14 2,274,253 2/1942 Howell 20645.14 3,155,232 11/1964 Leone 20645.l4

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner.

WILLIAM T. DIXSON, JR., Examiner. 

